


Food for Thought

by CrackingLamb



Series: Junkyard Additions: A Series of Holiday Related Stories [2]
Category: Fallout 4
Genre: Established Relationship, Explicit Sexual Content, F/M, Post-Canon, Thanksgiving Dinner, continuing the sequel to Junkyard Dogs, pregnancy announcement, some language
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-22
Updated: 2018-12-12
Packaged: 2019-08-27 19:55:37
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 11,745
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16709011
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CrackingLamb/pseuds/CrackingLamb
Summary: Hancock arrives at the Castle in time for Thanksgiving, and Nora has some news to tell him...Meanwhile, X6-88 has a problem, and Preston is on a mission for his General.





	1. Chapter 1

“General,” Ronnie Shaw said softly as Nora held a hand over the radio to 'mute' it.

“Yes?”

“The Mayor's been spotted at Gwinnett, the boy with him.”

“Thanks, Ronnie.” Nora smiled at her fellow Minuteman and went back to the radio with a lighter heart. “Say again, Preston, I missed that.”

The radio crackled to life and she strained to hear Garvey's voice through the static. “The site seems empty, General. No guards, no synths. Couple of Brotherhood soldiers who didn't make it out is all we've found so far. The scientists didn't even loot them.”

“No, they wouldn't,” she murmured.

“Should we go in for a closer look?”

“Be careful,” she cautioned. “Do not engage.”

“Understood. Garvey out.”

Nora leaned back from the radio and rubbed a speculative hand over her abdomen. It was too soon to feel anything, and too soon to see it, obviously, but she could sense the presence of her baby in her blood, in her spirit. She scoffed at the fanciful notion even as she was charmed by it.

Curie estimated she was roughly eight weeks pregnant, just enough to start feeling the effects of morning sickness and the exhaustion she remembered well from carrying Shaun. Thankfully so far she'd been able to keep her impending motherhood a secret, deciding that Hancock should be the first person she told after Preston. And now he was almost there. Shaun too. Just in time for Thanksgiving.

She stood up from the desk by the radio and swallowed back the rush of nausea that swamped her. She needed to eat something, even if it was just something small. She'd learned from her previous experience that keeping something in her stomach all the time helped the morning sickness. Luckily, Hancock's interest in baking had spread to other settlers around the Commonwealth, and there was a baker at the Castle who could make a wafer type cracker from razorgrain. That sounded safe enough.

She had just finished swallowing down the dry crackers when she heard a voice cut through the chatter that filled the Castle's marketplace. “Mom!”

She turned and smiled at Shaun as he barreled towards her, followed more sedately by Hancock, his shotgun resting on his shoulder, his face still in the process of relaxing. She wondered what kind of trouble he'd been expecting on the road. Or had seen, for that matter.

She greeted Hancock with a quick kiss and a more lingering caress, mindful of the eyes on them in her stronghold, before ushering them both into their private quarters. “How was the walk?”

“It was fine,” Hancock said in a tone that made her think it was not fine. She cocked her head at him and received a shake from him over Shaun's head. _Something_ had happened since she'd arrived at the Castle three weeks ago. Something he didn't want to discuss in front of their son.

“Sweetie, Curie is in her lab if you want to go see her,” Nora said casually and watched as Shaun's face lit up like a sunrise. He dashed off practically before the words were out of her mouth. She turned back to her husband and raised an eyebrow. “So...how was it really?”

“Tense. Brotherhood parties all over the damned place. The truce _is_ holding. We didn't hear shooting more than once or twice.”

Nora fumed. She'd spoken only a few times with Elder Maxson in the last two years, and all of them had been...strained. She refused to grant the Brotherhood the leniency to kill ghouls and synths without just cause, just as she would refuse to allow them to murder innocents or rob farms for their supplies. She didn't understand why that should be an issue she needed to resolve with them, considering the Commonwealth was at peace and there was no need for the Prydwen to even be in her air space anymore. Maxson acted like he was willing to work with her on that, but his soldiers still routinely engaged in scuffles with the locals. At any given time, her penitentiary settlement on Spectacle Island had at least one or two Brotherhood Knights in it, arrested on charges of disturbing the peace or even outright assault.

“Once or twice is still too many times,” she said when she'd gotten her wayward thoughts under control.

“Hey, they got a lot of stress goin' on right now.” Hancock sounded far too reasonable about it. She glared at him. Hancock, of all people, did not normally give the Brotherhood any leeway or sympathy.

“How many did you kill?”

“Just wiped out the one party,” he replied with a grin, apparently unconcerned about being caught out. She shook her head. She didn't need this any more than she needed to be confronted with a new Institute instillation in the Glowing Sea.

“John...”

“I made it look like a raider gang set off a car. Scarface won't be able to blame any Minutemen for it.”

“That's not the point,” she said severely.

“They were planning to hit Jamaica Plain,” he returned, all joking gone from his voice. “I know there are refugee synths there.”

Nora sighed; he was right to take them out before they had a chance to openly attack one of her settlements. Still...Shaun had been with him. Their son didn't need to be exposed to that sort of danger. Hancock seemed to know where her thoughts went, too.

“Shaun was asleep when I did it. We followed them, discreetly, until I could set it up just right.”

“I can't condone my own husband killing Brotherhood Knights out of hand, John, even in defense of my settlements.”

“You won't have to, Sunshine. I let the car do all the work.” He chuckled. “You'd think they'd have learned by now that cars are explosive and you shouldn't stand near them without power armor.”

“Be that as it may, I still can't let you go around...”

Hancock silenced her by taking her in his arms. “Hey, nobody saw, Shaun didn't get hurt, and you knew I don't take kindly to tyrants when you married me.” He pressed a kiss to her forehead. “Throw me in your clink if it makes you feel better, but I ain't gonna change.”

“I know that,” she said into the ruffles of his shirt. “Dammit, this isn't what I wanted to be talking about right now.”

“What did you want to talk about?” He ran his hands down her back, lifting her slightly as he grasped her behind to pull her closer. She could feel an interest rising between them and smiled in spite of herself. It had been a few weeks, after all.

 _Don't get sidetracked,_ she told herself. _Tell him_.

“John, there's a reason I didn't go into the Glowing Sea with Mac and Preston.”

“I'm assuming it's a reason other than not wanting to miss seeing me?” He'd started running his tongue along the seam of her neck, making her shiver and lose her train of thought.

She tipped her head back and looked into his eyes, so dark yet so expressive. Those eyes were very full of longing and love, and she hoped her news wasn't going to change that. “John, we're having a baby.”

He let her go and stepped back from her as if she'd burned him. Shock flattened his expression, making him look almost feral. He took a few deep breaths and tried to speak, but for a moment nothing came out. “You...what...?”

“Sit down, John, before you fall over.” He thumped onto the end of the bed, his hands flopping against his legs.

“A baby...how?”

“The fun way, I would have to imagine.” He frowned and she changed tacks, kneeling at his feet and looking up at him. “Curie thinks it's because you didn't change like other ghouls. You didn't become sterile.”

“But...”

“And I'm pre-war. I'm much healthier than the average wastelander. I'm happy about this, John. I want you to be too.”

“I...” He looked away from her and she felt something like pain take root in her chest. “I need to think about this. I need...I need some time.”

He stood up and walked out of their quarters. She let him go.

***

“Ma'am, do you have a moment?” Nora saw X6-88 standing in the doorway of the conference room and waved him in with a hand. She was tired. Hancock had disappeared hours ago and Preston hadn't checked in since their last conversation and she was just...tired.

“What's on your mind, X?”

“You always said I could ask you anything, is that correct, Ma'am?”

“You know it is.” She leaned back in the hard chair and looked over the one time courser. He still wore his black trench coat and sunglasses, but his posture had changed over the years. Less indomitable killing machine, more regular person just getting by. She wondered if they were all starting to look like that, all the former synth slaves she had freed. She feared the Institute had gathered up what remained of the SRB and reprogrammed them so they forgot what freedom was, and that was just another problem on her plate.

“I have a problem, Ma'am, and I'm not sure how to resolve it.”

“Sit down, X, and talk to me.” The courser sat heavily in the chair opposite from hers and took off his sunglasses to rub at his eyes. It was a completely human action she'd never seen her proud synth companion do before. His light gray eyes met hers and she leaned forward on her elbows, giving him her full attention.

“It's...it's Curie, Ma'am.”

“Oh?”

“She distracts me from my duties.”

“By having you scav for her?”

“She doesn't...that is...she's never _asked_ me to. But I know she requires certain components for her work to be more efficient. It only makes sense that if I find something I know she needs, I will pick it up for her.”

Nora tried not to laugh, she really did, but the confusion and awkwardness from the otherwise stoic man was just too much and she threw back her head and let it free. X6 frowned at her outburst but said nothing, although his expression turned mulish.

“Oh, X...” Nora wiped a tear from the corner of her eye before it could escape down her cheek. “Tell me something, what is it about her that's distracting you?”

“I find myself thinking about her at inappropriate times, and in...ways that I shouldn't.”

“Because you're a courser?”

“No, it's not that.”

“Go on, X,” she said softly when he stopped speaking.

“I do not understand these feelings, Ma'am. I would like them to stop.”

“Would you? Do you really want them to stop or would you prefer to do something with them?”

“What possible thing could I do with them?” he suddenly exploded, as if Nora had asked him if he wanted to take a trip to the moon.

“X, Curie is a brilliant scientist, a damn fine brewmistress and a beautiful woman. I can see the attraction. The next logical step would be to act on it, assuming it's reciprocated.”

He looked like he'd rather swallow his tongue than admit that Nora was right and she felt mirth bubble up in her again. “Ma'am...”

“X...” She stared him down, knowing that sooner or later he would crack.

“It is inappropriate for me to engage in relations with a fellow synth.”

“X, this isn't the Institute. You are no longer subject to the SRB's rules of conduct. You're a free man, and she is a free woman. Do you need advice on how to approach a conversation regarding this?”

He looked affronted, and she hid her laugh behind a cough. “I believe I can manage, Ma'am.”

“So what exactly do you need me for, X? Permission? You don't need my permission to pursue a...further relationship with Curie. You just need hers.”

“I...thank you Ma'am.”

“For what?”

X6 stood up and put his sunglasses back on, turning to leave the conference room. He stopped at the door and smiled over his shoulder. “Food for thought, Ma'am. You should get some rest. You look over extended.”

“Hah, no kidding. Go on, X, woo the nannybot at your own leisure.”

With a half smirk, the courser left the room, and Nora put her head back in her hands.

_Where the_ hell _was Hancock?_

 


	2. Chapter 2

Ronnie Shaw oversaw the placement of the tables in the market square while Curie – and a moderately abashed X6 – brought out dark bottles of beer, lining them up along the edge of one of the tables. Minutemen of all kinds began bringing out the food they'd prepared for the annual feast. Radstag roasted slow over open flame, mashed gourds mixed with brahmin butter and honey, silt beans soaked in vinegar and tossed with fern flowers, Nora's own cornbread, tarberry jelly and mutfruit pies...the food seemed endless.

Nora watched the proceedings from a spot near the door of her private quarters, catching sight of Shaun as he ran around helping set places with battered steel plates and a mix of silver and plastic utensils. A guardsman had told her a little while ago that he'd seen Hancock leave the compound, heading back up the road towards Gwinnett. She tried to push the detail from her mind long enough to enjoy the coming meal, but she was worried.

“All right, time to eat!” Ronnie called, her prodigious voice echoing off the sturdy walls of the Castle. Nora pasted a smile on her face and joined her son at the table, squeezed in between a young recruit she'd never met before and Ronnie herself. Across from her sat Curie with X6 next to her. Further down the long table she saw the merchants, Minutemen and farmers who provided the feast all mixed together, ready to enjoy the bounty of their labor. Her smile became less forced and more real as she felt the camaraderie of her men and women surrounding her. The air was cool, but not as cold as previous years, and the sun was shining. A perfect day for a holiday.

Soon enough the mountain of food was consumed, beer passed down the long table with jokes and cheering – Nora even let Shaun take a sip of it and laughed at the face he made – and the conversations turned to groans of being overfull and contented. Nora watched Shaun scrape another slice of mutfruit pie onto his plate, dolloping a melting spoonful of whipped brahmin cream over it with delight. There were faces missing, of course. Preston and MacCready were still in the Glowing Sea, Hancock was nowhere to be found and Nick and Piper hadn't been able to escape their duties in Diamond City, but she saw Deacon from the corner of her eye, his trademark sunglasses glinting in the sunlight. She saw Strong sitting off at the end of the table, a huge haunch of deathclaw in front of him. She could hear Cait's lilting curses from where she sat, although she couldn't see the feisty girl.

Suddenly she missed Danse. He would have loved a gathering like this. She even missed Codsworth, who was now supervising the penitentiary settlement on Spectacle Island, incorruptible as always. She missed the faces that had surrounded them last year at this time – Daisy, Ham, Kent and Edward Deegan. All the Triggermen who laid aside their guns for one day to just be citizens of the Commonwealth.

She missed her husband.

She missed _both_ of them, to be honest. Nate would have adjusted to this new world so well, so completely. And he would have been so proud of what she'd accomplished in just a few years with it. The ache of his death never really went away.

She felt the burn of tears behind her eyes and quickly excused herself from the table before anyone saw. Not that she was ashamed of her tears, but she didn't want anyone to be brought down by her topsy-turvy emotions. She escaped to the confines of her quarters and sat heavily in a comfortable side chair, cradling her head in her hands.

“Madame?” she heard Curie as the synth approached. “Is everything all right?”

“I'm fine,” she sniffed, wiping her eyes. “Just...hormonal.”

“Ahh, that is to be expected at this time in pregnancy, yes?”

“Yes.” She looked over to the petite scientist and doctor and smiled. “Come in for a minute. Have a seat.”

Curie sat across from her, a small table between them covered with books providing something of a barrier. “I am most curious to see what changes your body goes through with the bringing of your child. I hope that is appropriate, Madame.”

“I know, Curie, and yes, it is. I'm sure babies are not something you've really had a chance to study before.”

“There have been the offspring of Minutemen to see and deliver,” the synth said, a rather chiding expression on her face. Nora reminded herself that in two years there had been quite a boom in population at the Castle as people settled into the ordinary tasks of living. “But they are all born of this new world, and do not have the parentage of something so unique.”

 _Pre-war mother, ghoul father_. Curie was right. Who knew what kinds of differences, and possibly difficulties, lay ahead for Nora. There had been no serious complications in carrying Shaun, for which she was grateful, since the idea of performing something as drastic as a Cesarean section was terrifying in a world with only primitive anesthesia. But she also knew that no two pregnancies could be expected to be the same, and hers more unusual than most.

“Forgive me, Madame, but I have not seen Monsieur Hancock since this morning.”

“No, he's...I told him about the baby and he said...he said he needed time to think. I think he may have gone back to Goodneighbor.”

“On his own?” Curie sounded shocked. “That is a dangerous journey, even now with all the improvements towards law and order that you and Monsieur Garvey have enacted.”

“I know. But Hancock is a fighter, and well used to taking care of himself.”

“Is that the reason you are feeling...how you say...hormonal?”

“Partly, yes. And partly it's just...this is what happens when a woman is carrying. The emotions surge at times.” Nora sighed, facing her friend and doctor. “And I miss Nate right now.”

“Monsieur Howard would have been happy for you, I think.”

“Yes, Curie, he would have. It doesn't make me miss him any less.”

“I believe I understand, Madame. There are times when I miss my trio of scientists and the purpose they gave to me, even after all these years. It is strange, this world on the surface. One would think it was barren and dying, but it is not. You have done marvelous things for the Commonwealth, Madame.”

“Thank you, Curie. Now...” Nora slapped her hands on her thighs, sniffing a final time and standing up, “I think it's time we joined the others. I shouldn't let my moment of tears ruin the festivities.”

“As you say, Madame.”

***

In the morning, Nora woke feeling remarkably refreshed considering she'd spent hours worrying about Hancock and the fact that Preston hadn't checked in. She dressed and went out to find Shaun, since he'd already left his bed. The pleasant weather from the previous day had turned, and it was cold and misty. She grabbed her heavier padded jacket before she went out into the square.

The radio tower in the center of the Castle stretched high above her head, the Minutemen flag whipping in the stiff onshore breeze. But that wasn't what caught her attention. Ronnie stood frowning next to the radio operator, her hands moving in sharp cutting motions until she caught sight of her General.

“Morning, General.”

“What's wrong?” Nora asked, reading the senior Minuteman's face for trouble.

Ronnie sighed. “Preston still hasn't checked in. It's been over twelve hours. We have to assume...”

“That something went sideways.” Nora looked around the square, hoping against hope that Hancock had returned. There was no sign of his bright red frockcoat and the grumbling of his voice. “Dammit.”

“What are you thinking, General?”

“Is my power armor still in the station?”

“Yes, ma'am, the boys took their own to head into the Glowing Sea.”

“All right.” She thought quickly, ran through several scenarios in her head and discarded them all before sighing. “All right. I need to find Curie and put Shaun in her care. I'm going after them.”

“Need some company?”

“I'll find someone to go with me,” Nora said with a slight grin. “I need you here to keep a lid on things.”

“You got it.”

Nora hurried off to the distillery lab and found Shaun already bent over a microscope, Curie at his shoulder telling him something she couldn't make out from the door. “Curie,” she called. “A moment?”

“What is it, Madame?”

“Preston and Mac haven't checked in in over twelve hours. I need you to watch over Shaun while I recon.”

“Madame!” Curie said, aghast. “You cannot go into the Glowing Sea in your condition!”

“I'll be fine, I'll have my power armor. That suit has extra rad protection. Besides, there's no one else I can send. Hancock isn't back and I can't ask Cait or Deacon to go...it's just as dangerous for them.”

“What about Strong? He is immune to such radioactive levels.”

“I wouldn't send him alone, he'd get sidetracked.” Nora looked into Curie's worried face and knew she was about to make it worse. “I'll take X with me.”

“If you think it wise, Madame.”

Nora nearly smiled, forgetting for a moment that whatever else she might be, Curie had a level head on her shoulders. She didn't know what kind of romance was budding between her two synth companions, but it was obvious that Curie didn't intend for it to get in the way of anyone's duties.

“Do you know where X is?”

“On the battlements,” Shaun said, having snuck up on them while they conferred. “You going out, Mom?”

Nora ran a hand down her son's unkempt hair, so like her own. “Yeah, kiddo. I need to check on some things. You'll stay here and mind Curie, all right?”

“Sure, Mom.”

“I'll check in on the regular schedule,” Nora said, turning back to Curie. “I'll keep you apprised of everything I find.”

“Very good, Madame. Good luck.”

“Thanks, I have a feeling I'll need it.”

 

 

 


	3. Chapter 3

X6-88 stayed quiet for most of the journey, which suited Nora just fine. Bundled into her power armor, a combat rifle slung low in her hands, she pushed them onward, past the Suffolk County Charter School, past Gunner Plaza and into the marshland that bordered the edge of the Glowing Sea. She knew where the Sentinel Site stood although she'd never been there in person.  She'd ended her alliance with the Brotherhood of Steel before ever coming out here as they'd wanted her to.

The greenish mess around ground zero had started to dissipate now that the Mark 28's had all been cleared away, although remnants lingered. Pools of stagnant water filled with feral ghouls that healed almost as soon as she shot them and a veritable plethora of bugs delayed them, but never for long. Most of the larger adversaries of the Glowing Sea had moved closer to the crater itself, and they weren't bothered by deathclaws and radscorpions. At the radio relay tower OBD-521 they stopped for a rest, Nora lowering herself into a crouch to ease her aching muscles from the forced march. The suit's chronometer said it had been over eight hours they'd hiked and she was feeling every one of them as exhaustion set in.

The radio relay was still functional and her heart dropped like a stone into her belly. She'd hoped against hope that it was merely a mechanical failure that caused Preston and Mac to drop off the radar. With a sigh she forced herself to stand again, tugging the hydration tube closer to her mouth to drink some water. These old suits had been designed for troops to march just like this, endless and through hostile territory, and were outfitted with both hydration and ration tubes. She hated the pasty sludge that constituted rations in a power suit, but she knew better than to complain about it when her other option was to crack the helmet and nullify her reason for wearing it in the first place.

 _Just pretend it's really bland applesauce_ , she ordered herself, fighting to keep the ration paste in her rebelling stomach.

“You doing all right there, X?”

“I'm fine, Ma'am.”

“I need to rest and get out of this suit for a while. We aren't that far from the plane wreckage. If we can make it there, it has a storage compartment underneath that should be safe from the rads.”

“I've got your back, Ma'am.”

“Let's get going then.”

Squeezing into the crashed plane was hard work in a power suit, but she managed. Once in the storage compartment, she kicked old suitcases and containers out of her way and stepped down from the suit. She stretched her arms and spine gratefully, feeling pops and cracks all along her joints. She took a deep breath of air that hadn't been canned and regretted it as soon as she did. Fetid water, mud and the heavy oppressive tang of rads overwhelmed her and she barely made it to the far corner before she was heaving her guts like she'd been kicked.

“Shit, Nora!” X6 exclaimed, his shock overriding his tendency to still call her 'ma'am'. He came over to her and helped her stand as she wiped her mouth. “Are you all right? Have you taken too many rads?”

“No,” she said, shaking her head, feeling her pulse pound into the start of a headache. “It's not the rads.”

She could feel his eyes on her, even behind his sunglasses. Calculating and shrewd. She sighed, knowing he was going to put it together pretty quick. He had to have known she saw Curie when she arrived at the Castle considering everyone saw her nearly faint that day. It wasn't going to remain a secret much longer anyway. Her leathers were already getting tight.

She cocked her head at him, meeting his gaze head on through the plastic of his lenses. “I'm pregnant, X.”

“You shouldn't have come out here in your condition, Ma'am,” he replied without any inflection. She'd learned over the years that he used that tone when he was afraid he would be punished for what he said, and the old heated fury towards the former Institute burned anew. She hated that every emotion had been purged from him – and every other synth like him – until they were nothing more than intelligent automatons.

“I'm still the General. It's still my ass on the line when something goes wrong.”

“Delegation is important,” X6 fired back. “I could have come out here on my own and performed perfectly well to your orders.”

She didn't want to fight with him and just waved a hand, neither agreeing or disagreeing with his statement. Instead she went back to the power armor and tugged at the pack holding her supplies. She found a canister of purified water and cleared out her mouth before drinking down the rest of it. She'd brought some real food too, and now that her stomach had emptied itself, she was starving for it. Funny thing about pregnancy. Always feeling sick, yet always ravenous. She munched on a bar of brahmin jerky mixed with hubflowers and dried mutfruit – an energy snack she and Curie had come up with – and sank down into the dirt against the wall of the airplane.

“I need some sleep, X. You gonna be all right to stand watch for a few hours?”

“Of course, Ma'am. I'll wake you in say...three hours?”

“That'll do it.” She finished off her jerky bar and closed her eyes. There wasn't any way to get comfortable against the curved wall, with dirt and junk under her butt, but she was asleep in minutes just the same.

***

The Sentinel Site stood like a giant pyramid in a plain of torn and almost lava-like earth. There were no guards that she could see, even through the scope of her combat rifle. And there was no sign of Preston and MacCready.

“They must have gone inside,” she murmured aloud, crouched down behind the twisted metal bars of some buried structure. The girders and rebar stuck up from the ground like bones, but they provided at least some cover for the pair.

“The probability of that is high, Ma'am,” X6 replied, just as softly.

“Dammit, I told them not to engage.”

“We don't know that they did. They could just have infiltrated and been unable to escape without notice.”

“True, but that doesn't explain why Preston stopped checking in. He has a Pip-Boy of his own now. It has radio capability under most circumstances.”

“The only way we'll know, Ma'am, is to follow their trail.”

“Can you find it, X?” A wave of prideful scorn poured off the Courser and Nora grinned sheepishly. “Sorry, forgot who I was talking to for a moment.”

She gestured for X6 to go ahead and pick up the trail of their missing Minutemen. Conditions rarely changed in the Glowing Sea, and it wasn't long before he found footprints that matched both Preston and MacCready's boots. He found an empty laser rifle fusion cell underneath some cover and spent .308 shells next to it. The angle of coverage and position of the dusty footprints seemed to say that the pair of men had been shooting back the way they came, probably fending off the local wildlife rather than fighting any Institute forces. From there it seemed the footprints led straight to the small doorway at the base of the pyramid. Nora nodded and they took off at a jog, scanning their surroundings for any signs of movement or detection.

About halfway to the door, Nora pulled out her combat rifle and made sure it was loaded. She saw X6 do the same with his reliable Institute pistol. “We need to be ready for anything,” she said between jogs. X6 just nodded.

They pulled to a halt within twenty feet of the towering pyramid, checking once more for any signs of detection. There were none. _Could they really be so stupidly naive that nothing could make it this far?_ Nora thought to herself. She crept forward in a crouch, her Courser following suit, and was nearly to the door – maybe only five feet away – when X6 suddenly sort of shrugged, stood up and then stood slackly, his pistol falling to the ground.

“X, you okay?” He didn't answer. “Hey, earth to X6.”

The Courser remained still and silent, his head dropped forward. With a dawning horror, Nora realized she recognized that position. She abandoned her crouch and went to his side, lifting his head with her hand, pulling away his sunglasses as carefully as she could with the ungainly gloves.

“Shit...no! X! X6-88, report!” There was no sign of consciousness in the synth's face, his eyes closed and muscles loose. “Oh my God,” she whispered, sudden tears rolling unchecked down her cheeks. “He's been wiped.”

She looked around, frantically trying to see what could have tripped a recall code but didn't see anything. Indecision gripped her. She didn't want to leave him here, vulnerable to attack and unconscious, but there was no way she could carry him very far, much less all the way back into the Commonwealth. She _had_ to find Preston and Mac. She would need their strength in order to transport him to Goodneighbor, where hopefully Dr. Amari could fix him.

“Oh, X...” she whispered, sorrow flooding over her panic. He was as good as brain dead and she knew it. His personality had been wiped clean like a drop into a puddle, and he'd gone into the torpor state that unprocessed synths maintained until they were programmed. Even if they could restore him with a new personality, he'd never be the same X6-88 again.

For a minute she let herself grieve the loss before she mentally wiped her tears, sniffled back her sobs and hefted the substantial weight of him over her shoulders. His body flexed easily since he had gone so slack and she carried him back to the skeletal building remains they'd taken cover under before. She laid him down on the ground, nearly blinded by her tears and tried to arrange some loose rocks and dirt over him so he wasn't so exposed.

With a glare towards the pyramid, she tucked his pistol into her pack and started back for the door, no longer caring about stealth. Let them know she was coming. She no longer cared. If they got in her way, she'd mow them down.

She stepped inside the double doors of the Sentinel Site and closed out the grief as best she could.

 


	4. Chapter 4

Immediately inside the double door of the Sentinel Site stood a huge blast door, its locking mechanism sending three thick prongs of steel into the ceiling and three more into the floor. Nora crept to it as close as she could to see if she could hear anything inside the one time bomb storage facility, but the walls were too thick, and the door was too heavy.

“Damn,” she whispered to herself. There was no way to open that door without giving away her presence. Standing straight, she decided she didn't care. She spun the wheel of the mechanism and waited for the huge prongs to retract. The door swung slightly ajar and she waited, her combat rifle at the ready. But there was no one on the other side. She pushed it wide and looked into the interior of the Site.

Above her head the pyramid stretched into the shadows, but she could make out the venting shafts like the underside of an old rocket shuttle like she'd seen in the Smithsonian Museum before the war. She wondered idly if any of those things were still there now. She looked away from the ceiling and down into the labyrinth of catwalks descending into the gloom of the underground storage facility. It seemed a touch unnecessary to have so many open gridwork layers to something that was essentially a warehouse, but she was never one to think that the military had any logic or rationality, her loyalty to Nate notwithstanding.

To her right was an elevator, its call button blinking dimly. To her left was another catwalk with stairs leading down into a room set into the wall of the structure. It appeared to be some sort of office or lab station, with windows facing into the central open space. Amazingly, she didn't see anyone moving around, or hear anyone either. She didn't know how deep the site went, but certainly the surface area seemed deserted.

Perhaps she _could_ use stealth and get her men out before anyone knew she was there. Time enough to come back and deal with this Institute mess later on...assuming this wasn't all just an elaborate trap to get her here alone.

 _Keep that in mind, Nora_ , she commanded herself. _This could absolutely be a trap_.

She snuck down the catwalk to the office, peering around the corner of the doorway to find it empty. Banks of computers lined the wall under the windows, some functional, some dark and dead. She wondered if they were rebuilding the systems and if so, how they were managing it.

At the other end of the office was another walkway entrance and she followed it, still searching for any living thing to be in her path. But there was nothing. She continued on, finding more office suites and labs, all empty and halfway repaired. Where was everyone?

She finally reached the concrete floor, now cleared of debris and dust. She was starting to get unnerved by the silence and emptiness, but continued on. A huge set of doors opened into another room, this one appearing to be a loading dock. She was underground now, but two hundred years ago, this would have been ground level, and the doors in the concrete wall would have opened to a road leading into Boston. That realization put all the catwalks above her head into perspective. They were all maintenance accesses for bombs. Even as the thought chilled her, knowing how things ended for her world so long ago, she brushed it aside and kept up her hunt for anyone or anything in the present moment.

Tucked behind an oversized forklift she finally saw a tunnel leading deeper into the facility – the most likely chance of finding living quarters...and any Institute personnel. Settling her shoulders in the power suit, she started down the tunnel. Evidence of the Brotherhood of Steel using the site as a base became apparent in the first room she found. A stack of jumpsuits, combat armor and a locker of laser rifles stood against the wall, while bunks made up tidily lined the others. It was spartan and cold, lacking in any decoration, it was clear people had been living there, and not too long ago.

More tunnels and hallways led out from that first one, and before long she was turned around and a bit lost. She ended up in a once flooded out room – she could see the water line in the concrete – but that wasn't what caught her eye. In the corner, literally caged like animals, she found Preston and MacCready. Mac looked unconscious, but Preston was sitting up, his back to the bars.

“General!” Preston exclaimed as soon as he twisted around and saw her. “What are you doing here?”

“You went radio silent. Did you think no one would come looking?” She examined the lock on the cage and nodded to herself. She could pick this. “Is Mac hurt?”

“Yeah,” Preston said. He looked exhausted. “We've been here...pfft...three days? Four? I don't even know. They feed us regularly, but down here...” He shrugged. “There's no way to measure the time.  And they took the Pip-Boy.”

“Tell me what happened.” Nora stepped out of the power suit in order to pick the lock and was immediately bowled over by the stench of sweat, fear and waste matter in the room. Preston looked sheepish as he watched her face change.  She fought back the urge to gag.

“Sorry, General. I know you said not to engage, but...”

“They were dragging synths inside...making them walk through whatever that invisible wall is that they have outside,” Mac said, his voice gruff and scratchy, as if he hadn't spoken in days. At his mention of the invisible wall, she remembered X and felt her heart break a little more.  And her anger grew.  “I just...I went a little crazy, I guess.”

“Who is 'they'?” she asked while she worked on the tumblers of the lock, the pins finally dropping into place with a satisfying click. In moments she had the cage open and reached in to give her boys a hand out. She couldn't let herself get distracted by whatever the Institute survivors were up to just now. She had to focus on getting her boys out of there.

“SRB Coursers. There was a scientist with them too, all bundled up in a hazmat suit,” Preston said, getting to his feet and stretching with a groan.

“We need to get out of here,” Nora said urgently. “I haven't seen anyone since I came through the door, and I'm worried they've used you as bait to get me out here.”

“You would be correct, Ms. Howard,” a familiar voice spat at her from behind. She turned and looked into the beady eyes and wrinkled face she knew and loathed so much.

“Justin Ayo. The new Director, himself,” she said, sidling closer to her power armor slowly. She didn't think Ayo would make a huge fuss on his own since he struck her as more of the cowardly 'hide behind his troops' type, but it wouldn't hurt to be within reach of her suit, just in case.

“You couldn't leave well enough alone, could you?”

“What do you mean?”

“Sending your spies to come check on us,” he gestured at Preston and Mac, who was leaning heavily against Garvey, although he was on his feet.

“Fighting with the Brotherhood, capturing synths? Did you think I was just going to let you?”

“Ousting the Brotherhood from this location was purely strategic. This facility has its uses, and is well protected from the surface.” Ayo looked smug and Nora snorted in disgust. “And what you call capturing we call reclaiming. The synths are our property, after all.”

“They're free people, Ayo. Pretending they're just robots that can be programmed on a whim has never worked for you in the past, what makes you think you can keep a hold over them now?”

His smug face grew sly, and Nora's temper flared. The barrier that wiped out X wasn't meant to keep synths _out_. It was meant to keep them _in_.

“You monster,” she hissed, hand gripping for a rifle that wasn't there. She'd slid it back into the holster of her pack when she exited her power suit. Still, a good punch thrown might do the job just as well. She marched up to Ayo and got in his face. “Give me one good reason I shouldn't just beat you to a bloody pulp right here.”

The sound of laser pistols being raised and primed caught her attention and she saw a pair of Coursers in her periphery. Ayo smiled at her, feeling like he'd won. “Father was too soft on them, you know. They're made of sterner stuff. Their new programming makes them much more biddable and less prone to emotional outbreaks. Giving the synths free will of mind was never a good idea and I fought it as soon as I became head of the SRB. It was always harder to retain synths who'd been contaminated by the surface world.  But we've made some progress in that regard.”

With a shock, Nora recognized one of the Coursers as being Gabriel. Without the raider paint it had taken her a moment, but the look in his eye was the same. He would happily kill her if he was given the opportunity. The other one stood by passively, his gun at his hip, not aimed. She wondered if Ayo even noticed that his programming still didn't seem to fully control them.

There was a delicate balance being struck as she and Ayo faced off against each other. With Mac wounded and Preston too exhausted to fight, she'd either have to talk the new Director down, or fight their way out on her own. Fighting didn't seem like a good option; she didn't know how many other Coursers were out there, nor how many other synths might get caught in the crossfire. She tilted her head at Ayo, putting on what Hancock had always jokingly called her lawyer face.

“I'm taking my Minutemen, Justin. I would suggest you do not stop me.”

“And why would I let you do that, little miss General?”

She nodded at him as he used her title, ignoring his taunting tone. “Because you don't want the rest of my quite powerful army to come down here and wipe you off the face of the earth, now do you? Or my husband, for that matter. Hancock might bring some friends.” She stepped closer to him, almost touching his nose with hers. “Ghoulish ones. I'm sure he could find some out there in the Glowing Sea. The bright shiny kind.”

For a moment Ayo looked like he wanted to call her bluff, then he slumped backwards, a spineless retreat like she'd expected. He waved the Coursers to stand down and looked at her with undisguised scorn. “Fine, _General_ Howard. You're free to leave. But don't come back.”

“Oh, I'll be back, Justin. You can count on it. I won't stand for you 'reclaiming' freed citizens of the Commonwealth, nor will I tolerate your hideous wiping technology that is tantamount to murder. Trust me, Director. You _will_ see me again.”

She backed away from him without breaking eye contact, and got back into her power armor. As soon as she towered over him he quickly left, as if afraid she was going to shoot him where he stood. She was tempted to, Coursers be damned. She knew ultimately it might come to that, too, but for now she was content to take her boys back and get the hell out of Dodge.

“Come on, Preston, Mac. Let's get out of here.”

“Yes, ma'am,” Preston said fervently, hauling Mac up higher onto his shoulder. Mac just looked grateful to be leaving, and didn't comment. Nora led the way, her rifle in her hands again, daring any of the watching Coursers – of which there were now plenty in evidence – to make a move as they walked away.

 


	5. Chapter 5

With MacCready on Preston's shoulder, limping along with his support, and X6-88 draped over her shoulder, Nora took them back to the crashed airplane. The going was slow and both Preston and Mac needed Rad-X twice to make the trip. The first thing the Institute had done upon capturing them was take their power armor. After that they'd taken Preston's Pip-Boy, leaving him no way to communicate back to the Castle. Nora fumed silently in her suit, glad that her friends were not able to see her face.

Mac sank down against the wall of the storage compartment with a sigh of relief, while Preston worked on getting luggage and containers out of the way to make a camp. They both needed sleep, and Mac needed medical attention. Nora looked over the ugly laser rifle burn on his leg, but there wasn't much she could do other than give him a stimpak and make sure he ate something. She added it to the list of things she was going to hold Ayo accountable for. That burn would have healed within minutes if Mac had been given a stimpak right away. But now it was festering, and the healing chem could only counteract the infection. He'd have to heal on his own.

Once he was asleep, she went over where Preston was still moving boxes around and made him sit down before he fell down. She didn't know how he was holding up after so many days of captivity; he had to be exhausted. “I'm going to radio back to the Castle. We need more hands. I can't carry X all the way to Goodneighbor, and Mac needs to rest that leg as much as he can. I wish Curie was here. She'd know what to do for him.”

“You can't let Curie get anywhere near that place,” Preston growled. “Or _any_ synth...”

“How did they do it? Is there any way to shut down their barrier?”

“We didn't get far enough into the workings of the place to find out. As soon as Mac started shooting, they shot back and hit him. He fell and I stopped to see how bad it was.” He shook his head mournfully. “And they got us both.”

“How did the Coursers get through it if it's a constant barrier?”

“I think that's why the scientist or whoever was with them. They had some sort of control device and shut off the barrier after all the synths went through, so the Coursers were safe. None of them got hit with the recall code, they stood just outside its range.”

“They must have someone down there from Robotics to even be able to do such a thing.” Nora frowned, thinking over the list of survivors. There weren't that many that hadn't defected after she'd blown the Institute up two years ago. But then again, she never did know all of their names to begin with.

“Justin Ayo saw to us himself, every day. He didn't let us see anyone other than himself and his two pet Coursers.” Preston rubbed the back of his neck and Nora knew she should just let him get some sleep. But they had to have this out, before he started to forget the details. “But I know there's quite a few people down there. We could hear them going back and forth, working on something in the main part of the site.”

“Yeah, it looked like the computers were being repaired. The work force is probably all synths, forced to do their bidding on pain of literal brain death.”

“You say X6 got wiped, but his body is still alive? How?”

“When a synth is hit with a recall code, they go into a hibernation state. Like being comatose. A lot like Nick's standby mode.”

“Huh,” Preston said. “It's an effective tactic to use to keep them afraid. And even if one of them made it outside, as soon as they passed through the barrier, they'd forget what they were doing and go to sleep, and be easy to take back in. Yeah, effective.”

“Brutally so. It's also going to stop,” Nora said firmly. “I didn't fight through all that crap two years ago just to let it happen again. I promised I would take care of them.” She sighed and put a hand on her friend's shoulder. “Go get some sleep, Pres. We're safe enough here. And you need to get your strength back too.”

“All right, General. For what it's worth, thanks for coming to the rescue.”

“You're welcome. Anytime.” She managed to crack a smile for him, which he returned in a sardonic way. The two of them had been through enough together that they each understood the other's mind on things. She watched him settle down near Mac, pulling a thin sleeping bag around his body like a blanket. As soon as she heard his breathing slow into sleep, she went outside to radio the Castle and ask for backup.

***

Nora was waiting outside in her power armor when she heard the lumbering steps approaching. She smiled to herself, anticipating a rough greeting from her largest companion. She should have taken Curie's advice all along.

“Leader is weak, not able to carry two men, even in metal armor,” Strong said by way of announcing himself. “Puny human.”

“I have my hands full enough, Strong. I don't need your sass.” She thumped him in the arm just the same, and he thumped her back. Luckily he'd learned not to thump too hard, although the suit was more able to take it than bare skin. “If you carry X6, I can manage Mac.”

“I can carry Mack Reedy,” Strong said, as if affronted.

“He's hurt, Strong. He needs to not be hauled around like a side of brahmin. X is unconscious, and won't know the difference.”

“Puny humans,” Strong muttered under his breath, but he waited for Nora to get the others patiently enough.

Preston carried their gear, Strong slung X6 over his shoulder just like the aforementioned side of brahmin, and Nora carried Mac on her shoulder piggyback style, his arms around her neck and her arm supporting his injured leg. They set off northwards, back towards civilization. Veering east, they made good time to Somerville Place, where they stopped to rest and eat in the company of fellow Minutemen. The Somervilles laid a good table, Nora decided, even though they were so close to the Glowing Sea, and she was grateful to sit down in a real chair for the first time in days. Noting the looks on Preston's and Mac's faces, they were too.

“Maybe we should spend the night,” she said to Preston when they were finished eating. “It would do us all good.”

“What do you think, MacCready? A real bed, no watches?”

“Yeah,” the younger man said thinly. “I'd like that.”

Nora nodded and stood up. “I'll see what I can scrounge up from Lisa and Frank.”

“Nora,” Mac called, stopping her before she could leave the main house. “Maybe I should stay here, if they'll let me. I can get better and walk back to the Castle on my own.”

“We'll see. I don't like the idea of you traveling by yourself as long as there's so much tension.”

“Strong stay with Mack Reedy,” the super mutant said through the window. She hadn't even realized he was there.

“All right, that sounds good. I can accept that.”

“Leader make good decision.” Strong nodded as if it was all settled and stumped off into the trees, probably to hunt something for himself to eat.

“What about X6?” Preston asked.

“If Mac is staying here, you and I can probably handle X. I can carry him while wearing my suit if you've got everything else.”

“Sounds good, General.”

“All right, I think we have a plan. I'll just double check with Lisa and Frank and make sure it's okay.”

***

Two days later – escorted by a squad of Minutemen volunteers who'd guarded them since they passed through Jamaica Plain – Preston and Nora stood outside the walls of Goodneighbor, the glowing neon signs throwing garish shadows in the evening light.

“Preston, I need you to head back to the Castle. Tell Curie what happened and check on Shaun. And Duncan. He must be frantic.”

“Will do, General. Any other orders?”

“Just keep things held down for now. One problem at a time. Let me know if the Brotherhood makes any move towards taking the Sentinel Site back, or if there are any reports of Institute kidnappings of synths.”

“All right. You sure you're all good here, General? I can at least get your things inside.”

“I'll be fine.” Nora waved her free hand up at the wall, receiving a returning welcome from the Neighborhood Watch on duty. “They know I'm here.”

“Good luck, Nora. Keep us posted on X6's condition.”

“I will.” She turned to the squad of her volunteers. “Thanks for the escort, gentlemen. Take good care of my Lieutenant on his way home.”

“Yes, ma'am,” they chorused. They marched off with Preston, past the now empty skyscraper where super mutants used to ambush passersby. Once they rounded the corner, she turned back to the gate of her other home away from home and went in.

Hancock was there to meet her, waving the Watch guards to head out to bring in her packs. “What happened?” he asked when he saw X6 over her shoulder.

“He got wiped. The new Institute apparently has some new tricks up its sleeve.”

“Shit.” He looked her over, not seeing much since she was still in her power armor. “Here, let me take him so you can get out of that thing.”

“Thanks.” Hancock took a hold of X6 and carried him like a baby. It never failed to impress Nora how strong her husband was. “He needs to get to Dr. Amari.”

“Right.” While she got out of her armor, leaving it near the work frame in KLEO's shop, he carried the comatose synth to the Memory Den. She hurried to catch up to him once she had her suit settled and safe, not that she was worried about anything happening to it here in Goodneighbor.

Hancock hadn't seemed too tense when she arrived, but as they crossed the square in front of the Memory Den, she saw his face close up. They were overdue for a conversation and she wasn't sure if she was in the mood to have it just yet. _One thing at a time_ , she told herself.

“Sunshine...” he started, as if on cue.

“Not right now, John. I need to see X into Amari's hands. Please.”

He sighed. “All right, love.”

Someone must have notified the doctor ahead of time, since she was waiting for them when they got inside. Nora nodded a greeting to Irma, who stayed well out of the way, before shaking hands with Amari.

“Tell me what happened,” she said, leading them down to the basement where she kept her operation going.

“There was like...a barrier or something. Maybe a radio signal broadcasting a recall code. He walked right into it and went into complete standby. He hasn't wakened since.”

“How long ago was this?”

“Four days.”

“Hmm, it could be difficult to load a new personality. Usually synths go under and are reprogrammed right away. I don't know if there's any mental degradation that might have occurred in the elapsed time.”

“I hope not, Amari. I don't want to lose him completely.”

“Get him in that pod,” she said, waving a hand. Hancock was able to maneuver the synth into the pod with little trouble and stepped back afterwards, gazing at X with something like regret.

“Damn, to lose our friendliest Courser...”

“I know, John.” She took Hancock's hand in hers and they waited while Amari hooked X up to her machinery.

After a couple minutes, Dr. Amari looked up at Nora with a schooled expression and she braced herself for the worst. “All his brain matter is fine, but it's not responding to any stimuli. I don't know if an imprint will take. Do you still want me to try?”

“Yes.”

“As long as you can make him less of an asshole,” Hancock quipped. Amari raised a single eyebrow at him in chastisement and didn't respond. She went back to her work, and Nora could see files scrolling across the screen. Personalities, she thought.

“Do you keep the memories of those you've wiped?” she asked.

“For data purposes, yes. Much of the knowledge we had from the former Institute was gained this way.” Amari sighed. “I won't be able to make him exactly as he was, of course. The Courser known as X6-88 is effectively dead. But I'll do my best to imprint something suitable.”

“I trust you, Amari. I would like to have him be comfortable with keeping the designation, though. He was justly proud of it, and what it stood for, regardless of our opinion of Coursers in general. And...I was used to it.”

“No promises.” She bent back to her work and was silent for a moment before looking up at Nora and Hancock. “You don't have to stay. This is meticulous, time consuming work. And I haven't done it in two years. I don't need you breathing down my neck. Besides, he won't be awake for hours.”

“All right, fair enough.” Nora turned to go and let Hancock follow her. She wanted nothing more than a hot shower and to fall face first into their bed, but she knew something else needed to be done first. “Shall we talk?” she asked.

“Yeah.”


	6. Chapter 6

“You all right?” Hancock asked, sitting down on the old striped sofa and patting the spot next to him. Nora sank into the cushioning with a sigh and curled up to him, grateful that for the moment at least, he wanted to have her be near. It was hard to know what he was thinking and feeling sometimes, even after two years together. He knew how to hide his thoughts well. He hid his emotions less well, especially from her.

“I'm okay.” She fiddled with the ruffles on his shirt. “I think I need to talk to Elder Maxson, see if we can't work out an arrangement for clearing out the Sentinel Site. Time to break the Institute's back for good.”

Hancock put his hand over hers, stilling her restless fingers. “That's not what I meant.”

“Oh.”

“Fahrenheit was born when I was just a kid. I barely knew her mother, certainly didn't love her, or her me. I never felt like much of a father to her, more...that guy she came to live with when she was all done growin' up. Shaun, too. Sure, he calls me Dad, but I ain't really his father. And he's half grown too already.” He laced their fingers together and brought her knuckles to his lips. “I'm scared, Nora. I don't know anything about babies.”

She smiled. Leave it to him to get right to the point. Not to mention his forthright statement put a lot of his reaction to the news into perspective for her. “It's okay, my love. I do.” She pushed herself upright to look at him squarely. “Granted, I'm sure it's harder to get diapers these days, and there's no such thing as vaccinations anymore. Or baby food, for that matter.”

“See, all that just makes me more scared.” But he was smiling. “I'll admit I was shocked when you told me. Felt like a bomb dropped on my head.”

“I'm sorry.”

“Nah, don't be. I never dreamed...” He stared into the middle distance, his face suddenly going through expressions almost faster than she could read them. _Anticipation_ , she thought. _Worry, fear, and love_. _Most of all love_. His next words confirmed it. “I love you more than breathin', Nora Howard Hancock. I can't promise I'll be there for every single moment of this, but I can promise that I have never wanted anything more than to have a family with you.”

“Oh, John.” She cupped his face in her hands and leaned forward to kiss him. He met her halfway before just pulling her into his lap, turning her so that she sprawled on him without ever breaking the kiss for more than a second.

Foreheads touching he wrapped his arms around her and looked into her eyes. “I don't ever want to be apart again. I know it ain't gonna happen, cuz you're a General and I'm a Mayor. But still...I wish we could just spend the next...wait...how much longer you got to cook anyway?”

She chuckled. “We have about seven months to get ready for this bundle of joy.” She placed his hand over her abdomen, still flat but firm under their fingers.

“Can we still...ya know...”

“Fuck like rabid animals?” she finished for him sweetly.

“I wasn't gonna say it quite like that.” She giggled at him. “But yeah, I mean...it won't hurt the baby, will it?”

“No, it won't hurt the baby. It won't hurt me either, before you can ask. I may blow up as big as a house, but I'm still going to want you.”

He snorted. “Just the thought of you gettin' all blown up like a house is strange enough. You never been much of a thing anyway.” His hand trailed up from her abdomen over a breast, squeezing slightly through the material of her shirt. “These are gonna get bigger, aren't they?” he whispered in her ear.

“Yes...” she breathed out, suddenly not caring at all about a hot shower, or sleep for that matter. It had been too long since she'd felt his hands on her.

“They gonna get more sensitive too?”

“Um...yeah....probably...”

His thumb brushed over her nipple and she arched her back into it with a gasp. She didn't need to tell him that they already were more sensitive. He unbuttoned her shirt with the ease of familiarity, slipping a warm hand inside the cup of her bra. His touch sizzled through her and made her brain go blank.

“Anything else gonna change that I should know about?”

There were plenty of things she could have said. There were lots of aspects to pregnancy that weren't romantic or pretty, but she didn't think this was the time to tell him all that. She squirmed in place instead, tugging his tricorn off his head and tossing it on the coffee table. “Once I'm done being sick all the time, I'm gonna want you more often,” she said.

“You feelin' sick now?”

“No.”

His answering chuckle rumbled through her body and made her clench. She moved herself around until she was straddling his thighs, her open shirt right in his face. He breathed deeply of her scent and buried his face between her breasts, his tongue laying a path from one to the other.

“Excellent,” he murmured. Nora leaned back to pull at his flag, tossing it over the back of the sofa when she had it free. Hancock undid the rest of her shirt buttons and pushed the garment off her shoulders, letting her drop it to the floor with a plop. Suddenly she was ravenous for him, couldn't get enough of kissing and touching. With half an ear she heard stomping footsteps go down the spiral stairs and a single curt word before the front door of the State House slammed shut, leaving them completely alone in the building.

 _Ahh, bless your heart, Fahrenheit_ , she smiled to herself.

Hancock put her on her feet, nimbly unzipping her jeans before shoving them down her legs, taking her underwear with them. She reached behind her back and unclasped her bra while he was at it and within seconds she was naked in his lap again, pressed to him as tight as she could be.

He slowed down then, taking his time trailing his fingertips along her neck and shoulders, down her arms. He smiled softly when she got goosebumps. “You cold, Sunshine?”

“Only a little. C'mon, baby, warm me up.” The snaps on his jeans were easy to get to, even though she straddled his lap, and with a push and a tilt of his hips, his cock sprang free into her hand.

He hummed a little and pushed into her palm, his face intent on hers. She met his eyes and raised herself up, guiding him inside her. She sank down with a sigh, feeling the stretch as her body welcomed him, feeling him curved up inside her, hot and pulsing in time to his heart. They rocked together like that as Hancock scooted closer to the edge of the sofa so she could tuck her legs around him. Meanwhile she pulled his shirt over his head, wanting to feel the grooves and ridges of his skin without cloth interference.

Hancock gripped her backside with his hands, lifting her up to match the thrusting of his hips and she gasped as he hit a new spot inside her. One that was so close to being perfect she had to close her eyes to feel it better. Again and again he did it, each time bringing her closer to her peak, each time not quite reaching it.

“More...” she begged. “Please...more....”

He wordlessly answered her pleas, his breath panting against her throat. She tightened her arms around him, trying to keep herself steady as he bucked into her. She clenched on him, his pounding upwards thrusts making her shout each time he hit that perfect spot. Hancock let go of Nora's ass, his hands spread out across her back, kneading and pulling on her still tense muscles. The combination of sex and massage made her come apart, and she keened high and long as the climax washed through her. With a suddenness that stopped her breath, Hancock stood up and turned them so that he could lay her back along the length of the sofa. He pulled out of her body and dropped his head between her legs.

“Christ...” Nora breathed out as he licked and sucked up every drop of her orgasm, his tongue hot on her flesh. He chuckled and it vibrated through his mouth into her core, making her legs feel shivery and weak. He let one leg drop to the edge of the sofa, and held the other one over his shoulder as he continued his ministrations, stroking his tongue on her clit and pushing two fingers inside her. She couldn't help it, she went over the edge again, calling his name and gripping the back of the sofa with a fist.

“I love to make you come like that, Sunshine,” he murmured when it was over, his mouth trailing the length of her thigh. “I could do that all day.”

“I could let you,” she panted. “But I want you inside of me again.”

She pulled him up her body until he rested against her, his erection falling into the space between them with a wet smack. It didn't take more than a tipping of her hips and a thrust of his to seal him home again. He knew that she liked him to pound at her after she'd come and he happily obliged her, hands reaching for hers to hold them over her head. He pinned her there on the sofa, his body braced against the back of it, a wild gleam in his eyes as he strained towards his own release.

She could tell when he was near, how he arched his spine and let go of her hands to burrow his own under her, lifting her into his thrusts. He grew harder inside her, and curved upwards against her inner walls. She reveled in the feeling of him coming apart inside her, in his cries of release. She didn't even know if he realized how much pleasure it gave her to see him climax like that.

He laid his head on her chest afterwards, breathing hard but not sweating. The heat radiated off him like a blast furnace, but his pores were too fused to allow it to escape too fast. She ran her cooler hands down his back and he shuddered a little, purring a hum into her sternum. She smiled.

“Now we both need a shower.”

“Yeah...” He lifted his head and gazed at her. She'd missed that sparkle in his eyes. “A nice cold one.”

“Ew, thank you, but no. Not in December.”

“Damn that was good, Sunshine,” he said after her laughed with her. “It's always so good.”

She smiled again and traced his cheekbones with her fingertips. “It is, always.”

“I'm still scared shitless, you know.”

“Yeah, I know. But you've got me. What else do you need?”

He mock glared at her. “You're a smartass.”

“But you love me.”

He scooped her into his arms and carried her towards their room. “Yeah, I do. And I ain't done with you yet.”

He kicked the door shut behind them.

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Look for the next part of this series to begin around Yule (December 21 or 22). Happy holidays!


End file.
